Top foreign policy issues you should know about

Ahead of their next debate November 22, the Republican presidential candidates are getting executive briefings on hot-button foreign policy and national security issues. But you don’t have to run for president to get a speed-read on global security challenges from world-class experts. AEI analysts have prepared briefings on the key foreign policy issues you need to know right now.

Debate Prep Series Topics

The Rise of China

China has been accused of human rights violations, unfair trading practices, environmental degradation, and arms proliferation. In what ways can the next president address national security challenges posed by China, while at the same time promoting the economic ties that benefit both countries?

The question for Republican presidential candidates is how to respond to the growing threat in the Gulf of Aden region, where al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen and al Shabaab in Somalia have set up militant safe havens.

For decades, U.S. policymakers have tied US national security to stability in the Middle East. However, with the old order collapsing, the Republican contenders must consider reorienting America’s approach to the region.

In the years ahead, we may confront an autocratic and failing Russia. How should the next president deal with a progressively weaker Russia that continues to define its interests in opposition to those of the United States?

The risk of a European economic collapse with substantial negative spillover effects on the United States is no longer out of the question. What decisive steps must be taken to help keep Greece’s debt crisis from spreading even further?

The “problem of Pakistan” will continue to be an enduring foreign policy burden. The question for Washington in the years ahead: What are America’s interests in South Asia and what are the best means by which to pursue them?

U.S. presidents have long commanded a military able to carry out a broad range of operations. How will America’s next commander-in-chief maintain US military dominance in the face of massive defense budget cuts?

Iran remains the largest state-sponsor of terrorism, and it appears to be on the threshold of nuclear weapons capabilities. How can the man or woman sitting in the Oval Office raise the cost of Iran’s nuclear program beyond the breaking point? And what policies do the GOP candidates suggest to deter Iran from continually aiding terrorist networks in Latin America?